Television networks sell advertising during television programs and generally receive revenue for use of the commercial airtime in proportion to the program's viewership, i.e., ratings. Digital video recorders (DVRs) allow time shifting of programs on a real-time basis, which can diminish the amount of commercials watched by viewers.
Advertisers have tried to hype their commercials, for example, for new product releases, before they are going to be shown during a television event. Also, advertisers have utilized actors from television commercials. In view of the current viewing habits of consumers, commercials need to be more effective in enticing viewers to purchase advertised products.
Various technologies have been used to ease the insertion of advertisements in between program segments, such as using automatic computer control into cable or satellite broadcasts. Further, satellite viewers may receive broadcast advertisements from the local areas, rather than nationwide advertisements by a system that selectively transmits such advertisements to satellite viewers in certain areas.
However, even if a viewer is interested in the product or service being advertised, and would be interested in discovering more information about the product or service, the viewer often continues to watch the normal programming and waits to look into the product or service at a later, more convenient, time. Nevertheless, the viewer may forget about the advertisement completely or simply forget the name of the product or service when the viewer finally has time to look into the product or service further.